Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Sunday we woke up to snow and it continued the rest of the day and on into Monday night. We usually have a snow this early in the season, but it isn't usually this much! Once it was all said and done, we probably had 6-8 inches. So, of course we've been playing in it the past 3 days and of course the kids have had off school. It has also been extremely cold so our playtimes have been pretty quick with multiple layers of clothing that end up in big wet piles all over the foyer. But it's so fun!
Monday I invited a bunch of families to come over and have a snow day at our house. We had 7 moms and 13 kids ages 6 weeks to 11 years. It was a blast! Everyone was so thankful to have a place to go and not be cooped up at home all day. We stayed mostly in our yard that day becasue we tried to venture to the golf course and the wind was so cold, no one could stand it for long.

Yesterday we had PMO because it rarely closes for snow, but the elementary school was closed to *A* got to come with (H) and me. We went caroling around the seminary and then send sledding. Super fun!

Today *A*'s school is still closed and they're calling for a wintry mix this afternoon. (H) went to school which is good because *A* now has the fever virus that's going around so she's been asleep all morning. The snow is getting kinda yucky but it's still fun to look out and see white and be able to stay warm and cozy inside. On today's agenda, celebrate ^J^'s birthday and start baking holiday goodies to give as teacher gifts!

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Between the tree incident, hosting Thanksgiving, illnesses, planning Morning with St. Nick, lessons and carols, and trying to close out the semester, I've not had time for this blog. I'm hoping to improve since this time of year is my favorite time for reflecting and sharing holiday fun. Here are a few fun things to catch up on...
We've enjoyed many fires the past couple of weeks. After a mild start to Fall, we are making up for it now with highs in the 30s and lows in the teens the past week or so. It's not just the humans in this house that like fires...

It was too warm on Thanksgiving to have a fire, but the next day was freezing so the kids were glad we had a chance to have S'mores. YUM!

Sadly, these were the only pictures I took during Thanksgiving weekend. It was a great Thanksgiving this year though and I felt like I was actually able to spend time with my family while still hosting and cooking. It was relaxed and everyone stayed until Friday afternoon, so we were able to share more than just one meal together. We talked about how this is a year of "lasts" and how this would be our "last" Thanksgiving in Sewanee. While that is sad, it is also exciting to think about where we might be hosting next year!

Last weekend we had a few more "lasts" with Morning with St. Nick, Lessons and Carols. ^J^ was able to read at Lessons and Carols as student body president and get us great up-front seats, it was as beautiful as always and the sparkling tiny snowflakes all night long made it really special.

We also went to get our tree and the kids picked a very full one that is just an inch shorter than our ceiling. We've been slowly decorating it and trying not to rush the season, but we're all a bit anxious about Christmas this year since we'll be gone longer than we usually are and we want to be able to celebrate at home as much as possible.

Things are slowing down though for the semester and we're starting to pass on some of our responsibilities to get ready for our departure. I've been able to start thinking about what the future might hold. It's becoming exciting. Looking forward to more exciting Advent happenings this week and then a nice long break.

Welcome!

This blog was created after my husband was affirmed in his call to become an Episcopal priest. We actually lived on top of a mountain for a while in seminary, hence the blog's name, but are daily striving for those "mountaintop experiences" in our life and work so the title still fits. Here you'll find a collection of family updates, ramblings of a busy mom, stories of our adventures, possibly some recipes, and other random things that happen to be on my mind. If any of that appeals to you, welcome to Our Side of the Mountain!